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Cause of Rim Fire could take months to determine

The Rim Fire burning in Yosemite has become the largest fire in the Sierra's recorded history.

SOURCE: CNN

Cause of Rim Fire could take months to determine

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Updated: 2:29 PM PDT Sep 4, 2013

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, Calif. —

It's unlikely a fire burning in and around Yosemite National Park started at an illegal marijuana grow site, a federal forestry official said Wednesday.

Jerry Snyder of the U.S. Forest Service said that the steep and inaccessible canyon where the Rim Fire started Aug. 17 in the Stanislaus National Forest doesn't have a water source that growers look for when they set up remote gardens.

One fire chief in the nearby town of Twain Harte said last week that it was possible a marijuana grow operation could be to blame.

"I've heard many rumors, and that's one of them," Snyder said. "This isn't the kind of terrain growers look for. They want an isolated area, but they want access. This doesn't have it."

Snyder also said lightning isn't to blame. It could take months for investigators to determine what ignited the blaze that has consumed more than 370 square miles of Sierra Nevada forests.

"They'll be able to tell whether there was an illegal campfire in there," he said. "Another thing to consider is that this area is very steep, and if there was a rockslide two rocks hitting together could make a spark to ignite dry brush."

The fire is 80 percent contained, and crews don't expect full containment before Sept. 30. The far-off date is because the portion of the fire burning in Yosemite National Park is headed toward granite outcroppings that will act as a natural firebreak but won't be classified as technical containment.

Spokesman Brian Haines pinpointed the origin of California's fourth-largest wildfire to one location: The Jawbone Ridge in Tuolumne County, which sits on Groveland Ranger District land, at the point where the Clavey River and the Tuolumne Wild and Scenic River meet up. That spot is the focus of the investigation.

Letting geological formations help will allow firefighters to focus some efforts inside the fire's footprint. Snyder said they have begun to cut breaks and start backfires in an effort to save grazing land, wildlife habitat and historic buildings left over from early timber camps.

"We don't want the entire interior to be burned too," he said.

Officials said 111 structures, including 11 homes, have been destroyed. More than 4,300 firefighters are still battling the blaze.